The invention relates to an internal combustion engine.
The following discussion of related art is provided to assist the reader in understanding the advantages of the invention, and is not to be construed as an admission that this related art is prior art to this invention.
The internal combustion engine serves for example for driving a motor vehicle, i.e. for providing a torque that is directed toward driving the motor vehicle. The internal combustion engine has the at least one cylinder, preferably however multiple cylinders. In the cylinder or in each of the cylinders a respective piston is arranged for linear displacement. During operation of the internal combustion engine fuel and an oxidator, in particular oxygen, for example in the form of air oxygen, are introduced into the cylinder or into a combustion chamber of the cylinder, which is delimited by the cylinder and the piston. The fuel and the oxidator are subsequently combusted, which generates gas forces that cause a displacement of the piston resulting in an increase of the combustion chamber.
The piston is operatively connected with the crankshaft via the piston rod. The crankshaft converts the linear movement of the piston caused by the gas forces, into a rotational movement. During a work cycle of the internal combustion engine the piston rod or its longitudinal center axis forms a variable angle with the longitudinal center axis of the cylinder. This means however that not only a longitudinal force which acts in opposition to the gas forces and is directed parallel to the longitudinal center axis of the cylinder acts on the piston but in addition a transverse force is generated, whose effective direction is perpendicular to the longitudinal force. In other words the transverse force acts on the piston in radial direction with respect to the longitudinal center axis of the cylinder, i.e., it urges the piston in the direction of a piston run surface of the cylinder or against the piston run surface. The transverse force thus increases the friction of the piston at the piston run surface and correspondingly increases friction losses of the internal combustion engine.
It would be desirable and advantageous to provide an improved internal combustion engine which achieves smaller friction losses.